Are there any specific PHP functions or libraries that can simplify the process of handling search queries and database interactions?

When handling search queries and database interactions in PHP, using the PDO (PHP Data Objects) extension can simplify the process by providing a consistent interface for accessing databases. Additionally, using prepared statements with PDO can help prevent SQL injection attacks.

// Establish a connection to the database using PDO
$dsn = 'mysql:host=localhost;dbname=mydatabase';
$username = 'username';
$password = 'password';
$pdo = new PDO($dsn, $username, $password);

// Prepare a SQL statement to search for a specific keyword in a table
$keyword = 'example';
$stmt = $pdo->prepare("SELECT * FROM mytable WHERE column LIKE :keyword");
$stmt->execute(['keyword' => "%$keyword%"]);

// Fetch the results of the search query
$results = $stmt->fetchAll(PDO::FETCH_ASSOC);

// Loop through the results and display them
foreach ($results as $result) {
    echo $result['column'] . '<br>';
}